


this side of paradise

by nyom



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Alternate Universe - Non-Famous, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Infidelity, M/M, Painter Baekhyun, Smut, Strangers to Lovers, baekhyun likes dilfs, chef ksoo, yea
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-29
Updated: 2020-03-29
Packaged: 2021-02-23 10:34:55
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,359
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23376688
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nyom/pseuds/nyom
Summary: While his husband is away for a business trip, Baekhyun decides to hire a private chef.
Relationships: Byun Baekhyun/Do Kyungsoo | D.O, Byun Baekhyun/Kim Junmyeon | Suho
Comments: 9
Kudos: 49





	this side of paradise

“I am leaving tomorrow,” Junmyeon says over the dinner. Baekhyun’s jaw stills and he looks up to meet his husband’s eyes, except Junmyeon isn’t looking at him. “It’s just seven days. Minseok said he can’t do it without me so...”  
  
“ _Just_ seven days? And you’re telling me only now?”  
  
Junmyeon drops his fork, inhaling deeply. Baekhyun can hear his leg bouncing under the table.  
  
“I’m sorry, Baekhyun, I just... I didn’t think it’s a big deal.”  
  
“You’re leaving me for seven days and you thought it shouldn’t be a big deal," Baekhyun chuckles, "that says a lot.”  
  
“You’re not a baby, you can take care of yourself.”  
  
Junmyeon is a man of high standards, black suits, and golden watches. When he walks into a room, the spotlight is his. He works hard, he has earned rightfully all of his money and respect. But for someone so powerful, Baekhyun believes Junmyeon is nothing but a coward.  
  
“That’s not the fucking point and you know it.”  
  
Junmyeon closes his eyes and his lips stretch into a smile; he’s fuming.  
  
He loosens his tie, eyes still glued to the meal in front of him.  
  
“It’s a business trip, get over it.”  
  
Baekhyun’s jaw clenches, and in his mind, there are a few possible scenarios that lead up to their next fight. Junmyeon sits silently as Baekhyun screams at him about how they don’t even have breakfasts together anymore, about how Junmyeon often leaves in the middle of the night to sleep in the living room. Or he just locks himself up in his office for the night. However, the one Baekhyun didn’t even think of comes to reality.  
  
“Take the couch tonight,” Baekhyun says monotonously, just as if he’s uttering a _Goodnight_.  
  
Junmyeon doesn’t respond, doesn’t even look at Baekhyun as he throws the rest of his food in a trashcan and leaves the plate in the sink.  
  
Baekhyun bites his lip, his face twisting in pain as he makes his way upstairs. Once he closes the door of their bedroom behind him, he drops on the floor. Usually, he grips anything he can reach with his hands until his knuckles turn white, and he looks up at the ceiling until the tears in his eyes dry out. But it’s been too much, actually, just enough for Baekhyun to pull on his hair as he lets the tears roll down his face but doesn’t let a single sob leave his mouth.  
  
When Baekhyun had his first big exhibition, three years ago, he met Junmyeon. Truth to be told, he had no idea who he was at that time, so he had just smiled politely as Minseok, their friend in common, introduced them. Baekhyun found out that he is a CEO of a furniture company, which didn’t mean much, but then Minseok joked about Junmyeon being the most wanted bachelor in the country, which proved to be true after Baekhyun checked his Instagram during a bathroom break, and after that, he had his eyes on him. Baekhyun wasn’t really confident about a guy like him being interested in an edgy artist, but Junmyeon had spent the entire evening talking to Baekhyun about his art, asking questions and listening as he explained everything to him a little too enthusiastically. But Junmyeon didn’t care, he was genuinely interested in everything Baekhyun had to say even at the dinner he had invited him to a week later, even months after that when they had moved in together, and even when Baekhyun started listing all of his worries once Junmyeon knelt in front of him with a pretty velvet box in his hand. And all Junmyeon did then was kiss Baekhyun gently, reassuring him that they will take care of each other perfectly, just like they had until that very moment.  
  
But then, Junmyeon stopped making breakfast for both of them every morning, after work they rarely had dinner together because he would go straight to bed; he started forgetting about Baekhyun’s exhibitions or would make up excuses which refrained him from supporting his husband’s work. And Baekhyun stopped sitting on the kitchen counter as Junmyeon cooked, teasing and distracting him until the latter could only stop him with a kiss. Baekhyun stopped expecting Junmyeon to wrap his arms around him as he got into the bed with him or when they passed each other in the bathroom while getting ready for work. The decadency of their marriage became Baekhyun’s nightmare. Sometimes he wished it was a loud clash, an explosion, a huge fight that separated them once and for all, and not this passive-aggression that was piling up inside Baekhyun along with the fact that Junmyeon is trying so hard to ignore the entirety of it and completely gave into pretending.  
  
“Baekhyun,” a gentle voice can be heard from the other side of the door, “Baby, I’m so sorry. Let me in, please.”  
  
“Why the hell should I?” Baekhyun says, and his voice is much weaker than he intended it to be.  
  
“I want to apologize properly, please let me.”  
  
When Junmyeon sees him, his shoulders drop. Baekhyun feels like the latter can look him in the eye only when he’s vulnerable.  
  
As Junmyeon opens his arms Baekhyun immediately steps forward, like it’s an instinct, and he buries his face in his husband’s neck, melts in the warmth that feels welcoming, just in a way that’s becoming unfamiliar.  
  
“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you about the trip earlier. I’ve been so busy with work and I’m becoming forgetful. It’s my fault, it is.” Junmyeon says, his hand stroking Baekhyun’s hair, knowing just how much he loves that. Baekhyun gives in, rubs the tip of his nose against Junmyeon’s neck, doesn’t pull away when he threads his fingers through his hair and pulls lightly, but hard enough for Baekhyun to breathe in shakily.  
  
“Okay. It’s okay.” Baekhyun whispers.  
  
_It’s not_ , Baekhyun thinks, _but I want it to be_.  
  
“Let’s go to sleep now. You’re tired and I have to leave early.”  
  
The last time they went to bed together was probably weeks ago, and the last time Junmyeon made love to him was so long ago that Baekhyun stopped counting the days that have passed since. Alas, Baekhyun isn’t surprised when Junmyeon faces the opposite side of the room as he stares at the ceiling.  
  
Baekhyun wakes up to an empty bed, an empty house, an empty heart.  
  
He ignores the dull ache in his stomach as he walks downstairs, the cold wrapping around his bare ankles. If Junmyeon was here he would’ve told him to put on some socks, but Baekhyun never listens, anyway. He turns up the heating and walks into the kitchen. The fridge has been empty lately, Junmyeon doesn’t cook for them anymore and Baekhyun never knew how to so he most often opts for ordering fast food which makes him puke at least once. Junmyeon would always cook something that Baekhyun had never tried before, and it tasted like the heaven itself. It was a lovely tradition of theirs - Baekhyun sitting on top of the kitchen counter (even though Junmyeon was very much against it), sipping wine as Junmyeon chopped the tomatoes for a salad and laughed at his husband’s jokes. Baekhyun would try to distract him until Junmyeon couldn’t do anything but shut him up with a kiss. And it would be everything Baekhyun had ever dreamed of.  
  
“Shit,” Baekhyun utters as he closes the cabinets, one by one, realizing that there’s no toast, chips or anything edible in general, left.  
  
His phone buzzes and he reaches into the pocket of his sweatpants, certain that it's Junmyeon calling to check up on him, but he's wrong.  
  
“ _Rise and shine, baby. Are you feeling any better?_ ”  
  
Baekhyun has known Seungwan long before he met Junmyeon. They met in high school as the only two kids in class who gave a shit about Baroque and Rococo. Seungwan was the annoying poet girl who knew everything, and Baekhyun was the gay art fanatic so logically, they joined forces and became best friends even before the Junior year ended.  
  
Last night, Baekhyun texted her after Junmyeon fell asleep.  
  
“I’m fine. I just needed to sleep it off.”  
  
Baekhyun knows Seungwan doesn’t fall for lies like that one. If he could just sleep off the problems in his marriage he would probably be hibernating for an entire year, but truth to be told, his heart doesn’t feel as heavy as it did the previous night.  
  
“ _Bullshit. Junmyeon is a fucking asshole, I swear to god Baekhyun, when I see him..._ ”  
  
“No, Seungwan, it’s okay. We will talk as soon as he returns from Dubai.” Baekhyun pinches the bridge of his nose as his eyes close. “Fuck, my head hurts.”  
  
“ _Oh, baby. Have you had breakfast yet?_ ”  
  
Baekhyun manages to smile at the way Seungkwan still has a need to nurture him, just like she has always had. She’s been a lot like an older sister Baekhyun has never had.  
  
“No. There’s literally nothing in the house and I’m gonna vomit my stomach out if I eat any McDonald's shit ever again.”  
  
He can hear her laughing into the speaker. “ _My poor Baekhyun. I wish I could come and fetch you something but I’m on my way to work..._ ”  
  
“Hey, don’t worry about it. Do your thing.”  
  
Baekhyun sighs, staring at the floor as Seungwan curses at the driver in front of her.  
  
“ _You know what? I’m gonna give you the number of this great chef. I had him cook once for my birthday party, I swear his roasted chicken is exactly what heaven tastes like. Anyway, I’ll send you his number and you can have him come over and prepare you something actually edible. Also, he’s a cutie._ ”  
  
Baekhyun groans. “Oh, shut up, I’m married.”  
  
“ _I didn’t tell you to fuck him! You can still appreciate hot men. Oh shit - fuck, I have to go. Drivers are fucking assholes in the morning._ ”  
  
“Are you okay?”  
  
“ _Yeah. I’ll drop by tomorrow, take care of yourself, Baekhyunnie._ ”  
  
Before Baekhyun has time to answer, he hears Seungwan cursing before hanging up.  
  
Baekhyun decides to take his canvases and some of his art supplies downstairs to the living room. Junmyeon doesn’t let him paint there since he loves his white furniture too much and trusts Baekhyun too little to risk having it covered in paint. But the windows that offer a beautiful view of their garden let in so much light that illuminates the entire room. Baekhyun used to spend the night there with Junmyeon - the sunlight that woke him up in the mornings like those, followed up with Junmyeon’s tender touch and the warmth of his breath spilling over Baekhyun’s skin couldn’t compare to anything in the world.  
  
He stares at a drawing of two men sitting in a garden he had started weeks ago but never came around to finishing it. If he had to be honest, his fights with Junmyeon were slowly draining all of his creativity and will to paint. His friends have been asking about his next exhibition, and all the Instagram followers were starting to wonder why he doesn’t post as frequently as before. It would be a lie to say that Baekhyun didn’t create at all in the recent times. If anything, he has a dozen of torn up papers and canvases, covered in smudged shades of black, brown and distressing shades of yellow and red, all in the trashcan or under the working desk in his atelier. He hasn’t created anything worth exhibiting to the world in a while. Baekhyun isn’t sure if he’s getting worse at painting or if he’s just losing confidence.  
  
A new text message appears on his phone, containing the number of the chef Seungwan told him about, and a bunch of hearts and winking emojis.  
  
Baekhyun’s thumb hovers over the green button as he drags his eyes over the phone number over and over again, wondering if this is a good idea - getting a stranger to be all comfortable in your kitchen while he could literally be serving poison to him and Baekhyun would have no idea. Or maybe he’s just being paranoid. People hire private chefs all the time, what could go wrong, anyway?  
  
“Hello?”  
  
Baekhyun is taken back by the short amount of time that takes the man to answer the call. His voice is deep and his tone professional.  
  
“Hi. Do Kyungsoo, right? A friend of mine gave me your number saying you’re a private chef.”  
  
“That’s me. How can I help you?”  
  
A moment passes as Baekhyun worries his bottom lip between his teeth - how should he explain the current situation he’s in?  
  
“Well, my husband is away for a week and I have no idea how to cook and I’ve sort of gotten tired of McDonald's and instant ramen so I thought it would be a good idea to eat something of high quality for once.”  
  
He hears a soft chuckle at the other end of the line. “You’re lucky that I’m not that busy these days. Please text me your address and the time you want me to be there. Oh, and a list of food you dislike or are allergic to.”  
  
Baekhyun nods, and for a second forgets that he isn’t talking to the chef in person - something about meeting Do Kyungsoo excites him.  
  
“Sure thing. Thank you a lot. Bye.”  
  
There aren’t many things that Baekhyun dislikes when it comes to food. Whenever Junmyeon asks what he would like to have for dinner, Baekhyun always says _Whatever you want_.

When Baekhyun sends Kyungsoo all the info he had asked about, the latter replies shortly.  
  
_**Great. I’ll be there.**_  
  
Baekhyun eventually realizes that his fridge is empty and as he drives to the nearest grocery store, his phone rings.  
  
“ _Hi. I was just calling to check on you_.”  
  
“I’m not a child, but thanks, I’m okay. How was your trip?”  
  
He can hear Junmyeon sigh and maybe he’s being too passive-aggressive, but he doesn’t want to unleash on him until he sees him in person again. Maybe it’s a good thing they are away from each other for some time.  
  
“ _It was fine_.”  
  
“Sure. I guess you’re busy at the moment, I don’t wanna bother you any longer.”  
  
“ _Baekhyun-_ ”  
  
“Hey, we will talk when you return, okay?” Baekhyun says reassuringly as he grabs a bottle of olive oil, _Is that even used for cooking?_ “Focus on work, for now. I will be alright.”  
  
Chances are rather high that he, in fact, won’t be alright, but he doesn’t want to hear Junmyeon telling him how he messed up during his meetings because he couldn’t stop thinking about Baekhyun and their failing marriage, so he decides to simply pretend that everything will be sorted out once they see each other again, even though it might not.  
  
“ _Okay, okay. I have to go now. I’ll text you later._ ”  
  
_Please, don’t._  
  
“Sure. Have fun!” Baekhyun exclaims, hanging up shortly after.  
  
Isn’t it strange how sometimes we crave a break from people we love the most? The ones we’ve gotten so used to that the line between sweet, everyday domesticity and a torturing, never-ending cycle is thin?

  
When the clock shows three p.m., Baekhyun is sipping on a glass of champagne in the living room, dressed in a silky bathrobe that Junymeon got him for their first anniversary. He is already focusing enough of his energy on suppressing the wide range of emotions that his husband left him with to judge himself for re-watching cheesy movies and listening to ear-ripping pop music.  
  
As the doorbell rings, tugging him out of mindless scrolling through Twitter, he remembers that he actually hired a private cook. Right now, as he comfortably lies on the sofa, he regrets that decision and wishes he could’ve just lied like this alone, in peace, even with an empty stomach. _Why is it so hard to live?_  
  
“I’m coming! God...” Baekhyun yells as the doorbell pierces through his ears again, the sound makes his head throb.  
  
“Hi.” Baekhyun says once he opens the door, and maybe he’s slightly surprised at the sight that’s in front of him. He isn’t sure what exactly he was expecting his chef to look like, but this is way better than it.  
  
“Hello. I’m Do Kyungsoo. You’re Baekhyun right?”  
  
“Yes, that’s me,” Baekhyun replies, gripping the glass in his hand maybe a bit too harshly. “Come in.”  
  
As Kyungsoo walks right past him, Baekhyun gives himself the right to check him out; black coat, black button-up, everything on him is black, even the thick frame of the glasses sitting on his nose. His knuckles are red from the cold and the tips of his ears turn the same color once Baekhyun rests his hand on his lower back as he guides him to the kitchen.  
  
“What’s the occasion?” Kyungsoo asks as he drops his briefcase on the kitchen island, pointing at the glass of champagne in Baekhyun’s hand.  
  
“Oh. I felt like drinking something, it was either this or red wine, and I _hate_ red wine. Would you like something to drink, as well?”  
  
Kyungsoo bites his lip before replying, “I usually drink red wine as I cook, if that’s not a problem for you.”  
  
_A_ _tease_. “Not at all. Also, let me take care of your coat.”  
  
Maybe he’s being a good host, but maybe he desperately needs to see what the man is hiding under those thick, black layers. And perhaps Baekhyun drags his feet slightly as he watches Kyungsoo roll up the sleeves of his shirt.  
  
Something tells him that he is going to have so much fun.  
  
“So Kyungsoo, how did you decide you wanted to be a cook?” Baekhyun asks as he observes Kyungsoo chopping onions from the countertop; he has a feeling that it doesn’t sit well with him that Baekhyun decided to take a seat on the kitchen counter, but he doesn’t comment.  
  
“My parents used to have a small restaurant that wasn’t doing great at the time. Naturally, I learned how to cook by watching them and helping around when I had time. And when I finished high school, I decided that I will be taking after them, and, you know, it was hard to watch them sulk because the restaurant wasn’t doing well, so I started inviting friends, telling them to invite their friends, I paid for ads and created a website. Now I have a chain of four star restaurants all over the country.”  
  
“But what are you doing here then?”  
  
Kyungsoo shrugs and the corners of his lips tug up. “Someone needs that job at my own kitchen more than I do, and it’s nice to cook for someone that’s not myself from time to time.”  
  
“You must love what you do.”  
  
“And you? Do you love what you do?”  
  
Baekhyun laughs, remembering the awful art block he is going through at the moment, and all the torn papers and canvases with unfinished artwork on them decorating his atelier.  
  
“I used to think that I do, but now? I haven’t held a brush in my hand for so long that I forgot what it feels like to create something out of nothing. I just stare at a blank canvas for hours.”  
  
“You are a painter?” Kyungsoo asks, sounding surprised. Baekhyun has always thought that he looked like an artist.  
  
“I used to be.”  
  
Kyungsoo starts laughing as he finishes up his salad, soaking it in vinegar. Baekhyun realizes his lips curve into a shape that almost resemble a heart when he smiles.  
  
“You artists are so dramatic. Maybe you’re just going through a period where you simply have no inspiration. What is your inspiration, anyway?”  
  
Baekhyun bites his lip. _His inspiration?_  
  
The first thing he remembers drawing is his family, circles for heads and two parallel lines for legs, maybe he’d add arms if he felt generous that day. As he grew older, he realized he enjoyed portraying people who's faces and bodies he created in his own mind. Once he turned seventeen, he started focusing on touches, skin on skin. He painted cold hands, and a warm, bare back; pink lips and that sweet spot where jaw line meets neck. And that’s what he stuck to. His entire life.  
  
“Intimacy,” Baekhyun says, _S_ _omething I haven’t felt in a very long time_.  
  
“That sounds nice. I hope I get to see your art sometime...” Kyungsoo drags it out so it comes out as a question, and Baekhyun just smiles.  
  
“I’ll make sure to invite you to my next exhibition.”  
  
Kyungsoo nods, turning around to check the oven, and as he bends over, Baekhyun almost whistles at the sight.  
  
“I still don’t know what you’re making, though...” Baekhyun says, leaning back on his arms; there is something so nice in sitting on the kitchen counter, watching a handsome man cook dressed in a black shirt that stretches over his muscular back so deliciously that Baekhyun almost doesn’t catch anything Kyungsoo says to him.  
  
“Chicken and potatoes, you can never go wrong with that because it’s a quite simple meal anyone could make, yet, that’s exactly what makes it so challenging. A good cook makes it the best thing you’ve ever put in your mouth, a decent one? Just an edible meal.”  
  
Baekhyun thinks that it’s charming in a way just how Kyungsoo speaks of cooking as if it’s rocket science, and maybe a bit cute, even. He can’t stop his lips from forming a slight smile as he does so, and the entire time he keeps his eyes at the food in front of him and the knife in his hand. He also thinks it’s beautiful how all sorts of people are passionate about different kinds of things.  
  
“Just so you know, I have exquisite taste buds, I’m not gonna hold myself back from critiquing you.”  
  
Kyungsoo chuckles, “That’s brave coming from someone who survives on McDonald's and instant ramen.”  
  
Baekhyun’s cheeks heat up, it almost feels as if Kyungsoo is judging him.  
  
“It’s just that usually my husbands cook for both of us, but lately he’s been too busy to do so, so I have to manage on my own. Don’t be mean.”  
  
“Hey, I’m kidding,” Kyungsoo reassures him as he walks over to the sink to wash his hands. He’s already cleaned everything up, put the dishes he had used in the dishwasher, wiped the kitchen island clean; he hates how much this routine reminds him of Junmyeon, those long gone moments he might never experience again.  
  
Kyungsoo grabs the glass of wine Baekhyun filled up for him earlier, walking over to him, and Baekhyun is too lost in his thoughts about Junmyeon’s and his memories in this same kitchen that, for a second, he almost believes Kyungsoo is about to stand right in-between his spread legs and touch him in all the ways Baekhyun’s been craving for months. But instead, Kyungsoo takes a short sip as he leans with his back on the edge of kitchen island. Something about each of his movements is so suave.  
  
“Though, cooking is not as hard as you probably think. You should try learning how to.” Kyungsoo nods at him as he says that, and Baekhyun tries so hard not to check him out from head to toe now that he’s facing him from so close.  
  
Baekhyun got married in his early twenties, which means he had eyes for no one except Junmyeon in the years which most people spend having multiple partners and living their lives to the fullest. He had almost forgotten that there were other men in the world, ones that could please him in ways that Junmyeon has been refusing to for the past few months, and just having a normal conversation with Kyungsoo makes Baekhyun’s insides turn in an almost unfamiliar way.  
  
“Are you offering any classes?” Baekhyun wishes he could consider this question genuine, and not flirtatious in any way, but he knows himself better than that. Kyungsoo doesn’t, though, so thankfully he simply smiles and puts his glass down.  
  
“Sure, we’ll make a deal.”

Baekhyun wonders if Kyungsoo is the type of man who could have anyone he wants, but rather devotes himself to his profession. He certainly looks like one. He has mentioned that he mostly cooks just for himself. Maybe it's a lack of friends that makes Baekhyun want to know more about this man. 

Kyungsoo observes Baekhyun as he slowly chews the chicken, and from the first bite he wanted to scream about how good it just feels in his mouth, but he still doesn’t want to grant Kyungsoo that satisfaction. He dips a slice of potato in a white sauce he knows nothing about, but knows he can trust Kyungsoo with.  
  
“So? Better than a Big Mac?” Kyungsoo says, and he’s already so cocky, as if he knows his food is the best thing he has ever tried solely by the way Baekhyun chews it slow enough that it seems like he wants to savor that first bite forever.  
  
“Shut up,” Baekhyun replies with his mouth full, “This is so fucking good, oh my god.”  
  
Kyungsoo turns around to grab the bottle of champagne Baekhyun had left there earlier that day, and he fills his empty glass with it, sliding it across marble surface over to Baekhyun.  
  
“Enjoy.”  
  
“Wait. You should eat with me. There’s plenty left.”  
  
Kyungsoo shakes his head, “No, but thank you. You can have it all for yourself. I have to be somewhere soon, anyway.”  
  
“Oh.” Baekhyun won’t admit, but he’s slightly disappointed, he wants to talk to Kyungsoo some more. “Let me bring you your coat then.”  
  
As he escorts Kyungsoo out, his phone buzzes and his heart sinks as soon as he sees that it’s a message from Junmyeon.  
  
_Don’t forget to eat._  
  
“See you tomorrow, then, Baekhyun.” Kyungsoo smiles at him so endearingly, and Baekhyun just waves at him, watching him as he approaches his car, black and neatly polished, just how Baekhyun likes them.  
  
_Don’t worry. I have._


End file.
